


Happy Groundhog Day!

by Thette



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Castiel in the Bunker, Castiel/Dean Winchester Anniversary, First Kiss, Fluff, Human Castiel, M/M, Men of Letters Bunker, POV Sam Winchester, Post Season 9, Presents, Raised You From Perdition, Sam Ships It, Sam and Cas are brothers and friends, Surprise Party, wile e coyote and roadrunner
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-02
Updated: 2014-03-02
Packaged: 2018-01-14 07:27:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1257976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thette/pseuds/Thette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anon prompt on Tumblr: "Castiel struggles with a surprise gift he gets for Dean. Even more so, how to hide it from him."</p><p>This turned into a fic about Sam and Cas being bros, the sixth anniversary of Cas dragging Dean out of Hell, Cas struggling with humanity and Dean with his feelings. Also, a fic where a Wile E. Coyote card says more about Cas' feelings than he could himself. Takes place in September 2014, in a happy post-Season 9 fantasyland.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Happy Groundhog Day!

**Author's Note:**

> ETA, 2014-03-12: I should probably mention that Dean punches Sam in this fic. It's done in a fit of temper and never really addressed, much like the other times he's done it in the show.

"Morning, Cas," Sam said, giving the former angel's a cup of his favorite cinnamon scented coffee. "You've been a bit grumpy lately. Want to talk about it?" Sam sat down at the kitchen table, leaning back slightly with open arms, trying to be as inviting as possible.  
  
Cas sighed and slumped. Since he turned human, he had perfected certain mannerisms. There was something of a surly teenager about him. Sam wondered if he was experiencing something akin to puberty.  
  
"Hey, we're friends, right? Friends help each other out." Sam mirrored him, leaning forward onto his elbows and sipping his own cup.  
  
"I'm a failure." Sam just raised one eyebrow expectantly, waiting for the continuation. "It is customary to give gifts to celebrate the anniversary of life changing events. It is now only five days until September 18th, the day I pulled Dean out of Hell." Cas put his head into his hands. "And I have no idea what kind of gift to give him."  
  
"Well," Sam said with a smile, "what do you want your gift to say?"  
  
"'It's been six years since I dragged your soul from the Pit'?"  
  
"That's a start. How does that make you feel?"  
  
"Human. Fallen."  
  
Sam laughed as he got up to give Cas a slap on the back. "Maybe that's not what you should focus on. You know he blames himself for your Fall, right?" Cas face fell, appropriately enough. "Don't worry, he blames himself for everything. It's what he does. But you're celebrating; it must be a good thing."  
  
"Of course. If I hadn't met him, I'd still be a loyal soldier, probably cannon fodder in the Apocalypse. No other creature has changed me more."  
  
"Not exactly a glowing endorsement, but we'll work with that. Wanna come gift shopping with me?"  
  
Cas drank the entire cup in a single gulp. "Yes. Let's do that. Maybe you can help."  
  
***  
  
Sam was beginning to regret his decision. They had started by going to a greeting card store, and Cas had been looking through the cards for two hours, squinting hard and putting each and every one back. "Sam, these are all wrong," he said, eventually.  
  
"Yeah, I don't think the market for 'Happy Anniversary of Your Rebirth' cards is anything to write home about." Though maybe it should be. There had to be other people who had been dead and revived, although probably more often by medical means than magical or mystical ones. Why not celebrate a CPR anniversary? "You could get a blank card, and try to write your own message instead." Most blank cards were sickeningly cute, though. There were plenty of flowers, and a lot of baby animals. Sam jokingly showed Cas a card with two cuddly guinea pigs in a basket, but Cas just shook his head with a twitch of his mouth that probably was a smile. "We keep coming back to the issue that you need tell me what you're feeling and what you want to convey to Dean. How about this one?"

The card was really nice. A soft, yellow filter over a photo of a fork in the road, with a classic car (although not an Impala) driving through the morning mist. "Yes," Cas said. "That would suit him very well." Something caught Sam's eye. On the top shelf was a cartoon card with Wile E. Coyote. He picked it up, and looked closer. The coyote was in free fall, while the Roadrunner was hovering out of reach with flapping feet. _I Keep Falling for You_ , the card said. "No, that's the one!" Cas said decisively. Sam chuckled, and picked up a card for Dean with _Happy Groundhog Day!_

***

The next stop was the mall. Cas looked like he was about to puke. He had never quite learned how to handle crowds. "This is going to be easier if you just let me know what you want to give him. Personally, when I remember his birthday or when we bother with Christmas, we go for the practical stuff or the little treats. Socks, gun oil, ammo, henleys, chocolate, amulets, cassette tapes, porn… You know, stuff we need or stuff that makes us happy."

"I do want to make him happy and bring him comfort."

"Aww, that's adorable!" Cas frowned at him, and Sam laughed. "Just poking fun, it's what brothers do."

"Do you consider yourself my brother?"

"Yeah, Cas. Yeah, I do."

"Is the confirmation of our familial bond an occasion that requires a hug?"

Sam laid his arm around Cas' shoulders. "Let me introduce you to the side hug." He squeezed, and Cas reluctantly let his arm come around Sam's waist. "There you go, and now you release me. It's very popular among fundies," he said, once Cas had let go. "No dirty parts touching."

Cas frowned. "We have both recently showered, and not been in any altercations to sully our clothes or body parts since."

Sam shook his head. "Genitals, Cas. And breasts. Erogenous zones. Can we please not talk about this in public?"

"Of course. Back to the question. I want to make him happy, but I want my gift to be meaningful. This is, after all, the first September 18th that I have been a human. I don't think clothes will be appropriate."

"Would you like to give him something you made yourself? As long as it isn't a sweater."

"Why not a sweater?"

"They're cursed," Sam joked, before deciding he really didn't want to explain the Sweater Curse, or that he just had implied that Dean was Cas' boyfriend. "Never mind. Knitting a sweater would take too long, anyway."

"I find that I like the idea of making something for Dean."

"Okay, let's go with that. So, crafts? Painting? What do you want to do?"

"I think I might be able to paint something suitable."

***

Sam helped Cas set up the easel and canvas in one of the less used store rooms. They had decided to go for acrylic paint, since oil wouldn't dry properly in five days, and Cas seemed nervous when Sam described how to work with watercolors. This was probably the first time ever Sam had had any practical use for his mandatory freshman year art class. (He still sucked at drawing, but the technical parts were easy.) As he left Cas to his work, Dean ambushed him in the hall.

"What have you two been doing?" he asked, accusingly. "You're sneaking around without me."

"Hey, can't I have some quality time with Cas?" Dean left, swearing under his breath.

The next few days were awful. Dean was in a bitchy mood, and Cas withdrew to his painting, which made Dean even more surly. It took extreme effort to convince Dean not to simply kick in the locked door to the storage room.

"Get a grip, Dean!" Sam shouted, eventually. "The guy wants some private time. You are the one who's always nagging him about personal space. Well, that room is Cas' personal space, and you're not invited!" Though truth to be told, it's been at least two years since Dean last complained about Cas' personal space issues.

"What? You want me to just sit around here, waiting for you two to get together behind my back?"

A memory of Star Trek: TNG re-runs on crappy motel TV screens flashed before Sam's eyes. It was the part where Picard and Riker both facepalmed. "Are you jealous, you dork?"

"You're the dork, dork!"

Sam grabbed his idiot brother by the shoulder. "I love Cas. I love him like a brother. You… don't." He raised one eyebrow, which lead to Dean slamming his fist into Sam's jaw and leaving. "Get your act together, dumbass!" Sam yelled at Dean's rapidly retreating back, before massaging his aching face. What an asshole Dean could be. At least this time he hadn't really put his full strength behind the punch.

***

Dean's Other Birthday dawned, and Sam went for a run. He had plenty of time, since he was the only morning person in the bunker. Once he had run five miles, done weights and yoga in the gym, and showered, he started the coffee maker and went to wake Cas. It was a chore, like always, because Cas rarely got up unless he absolutely had to. Sam had asked why, and got a reply about five billion years of early mornings. Fair enough. There were worse human indulgences than sleeping late.

They had their coffee and some toast, and started decorating. Cas had made a banner, black text on an off-white background, simply saying "Congratulations on the Anniversary of Your Rescue", and they covered the War Room in streamers. Sam inflated a few balloons, but there wasn't much time left. They arranged Cas' painting, covered in an old sheet, in a corner, and brought their cards to the table. Dean's tired steps could be heard from the bedrooms, shuffling about like he usually did before he woke up properly. Cas and Sam stood by the door, ready to throw confetti at him. Unfortunately, they hadn't counted on his hunter's instincts kicking in, even after living a year in a safe place. Dean managed to get an elbow into Sam's solar plexus as he entered the room. Sam doubled over with breathlessness and pain, and Dean went on to grapple with Cas. The confetti tumbled out in waves of glitter across the floor instead of raining from the air, and Dean and Cas fell in a sprawling mess of limbs.

"Dean!" Sam shouted once he got his breath back. Okay, maybe a surprise party for the person who had spent his entire life hunting things that go bump in the dark wasn't the best of ideas. Dean actually stopped and looked at them.

"What the hell are you guys doing?"

"We're celebrating your and Cas' anniversary," Sam replied. Cas frowned and squinted at him.

"I repeat: what the hell?" Dean and Cas got up from the floor, Dean dusting imaginary dirt off his robe and pajama pants.

"Happy Groundhog Day," Sam said, giving Dean his card. "Hope you didn't see your shadow this morning."

"Wait…" Dean turned towards Cas. "You did this? For me? Just because it's six years to the day since you saved my soul?" Cas silently gave Dean his card. Dean read it, twice, and looked back up at Cas. Sam could see his brother's mental processes working at top speed. His eyes went back to the card, back to Cas, to the card, and then he quickly stepped into Cas' personal space and raised a hand to his cheek. "Tell me… Let me know…" The card fluttered to the floor.

"Yes," Cas breathed, and all of a sudden they were making out on the War Room table as if Sam wasn't even in the room. Gross. But sort of cute. He guessed the painting could wait. It was a gorgeous work. Cas had explained that it was how he had seen Dean on that fateful day in Hell, a flickering speck of yellow light with streaks of dark red and brown; a soul struck by pain and torture, but still achingly bright. Dean's green eyes had been the same. Cas' had painted his own true form as a white-blue light across the entire canvas in waves, focused in two points that looked like his eyes. Sam picked the card up, and couldn't resist reading a few sentences.

_Dean,_

_Six years ago, I sealed my fate to yours. I've never regretted that decision. Everything I've done since, I've done out of love for you. A love that Heaven tried to torture out of me more than once, but I will always remember what I feel for you, even when I don't remember you. Yes, I keep Falling for you, and it's worth it. The coyote is Man chasing the Divine, but it's also me, always following you._

There was more, but Sam couldn't keep reading. He put the card down on the table, and went to put the celebratory pie in the oven. They would probably come into the kitchen once they could smell apple pie. Or once they were done expressing their long suppressed feelings for each other. "I use that table," Sam shouted in their general direction. "It'd better not be sticky when I come back!"


End file.
